砂の美 (Keisei no Suna)
by Lady Songie
Summary: The murder of her troupe left her devastated, and thirsty for revenge. The only way she would quench this thirst is to team up with Konoha and bring an end to the countless murders her sensei left in his wake. Mio must learn the ways of the shinobi once more with the help of an Uchiha and his stubborn team. SasukexOC
1. The Massacre

**Keisei no Suna**

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><p>AN: This is an OCxSasuke fanfic. The OC is my creation, along with any characters regarding her past and also the antagonist in the story.

I also want to note that the story translates to, The Beauty of the Sands as Suna means sands. I may use this interchangeably, mixing up beauty of the sands to keisei no suna. I will try to keep it consistent though.

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><p><em>Chapter 1 – The Massacre<em>

"One…two..three!" The ringleader had counted and two teens, a girl and boy, both performed a back-flip from a tightrope. They were probably fifteen feet off the ground and landed safely in the net below. "Good job! Just remember at the end, one of you must be at the bottom and the other lands on the other's hand, alright?" The two nodded, not going against what their leader had told them to do, and climbed a ladder that led to the top of the tight-rope.

Today was another show and this time around it took place in a rather small yet bustling village. The tent was set up for tonight, and a young summoner was busy sitting outside the tent and against a tree. Her eyes were closed but she did not sleep. Rather, she was simply remembering her past and how things used to be so complicated back then.

"Mio! Go and get ready, we're going to open the tent in about an hour or so." One of the dancers, a rather slim middle aged woman had called out. The blonde summoner only fluttered her eyes to see the woman about to walk towards her when she replied, "Okay okay."

The young summoner was rather anxious for tonight's performance. This was their first time with a new line-up and she found herself twiddling with her fingers as she returned to her tent. There was only a small cot, a bag full of her small belongings and her large summoning scroll beside her cot. The girl changed into her red performing kimono, the opening up to her mid-thigh, with the upper part sleeve-less, wrapping her brown sash around her waist. Underneath she had a fishnet one-piece, strapless and the bottom only going to her mid thigh. She wore her usual sandals, and re-wrapped her wrists, as it helped with any acrobats she decided to do tonight.

The blonde turned around and picked up her scroll and slung it over her head. "Well, better get ready." She smiled to herself as she left her tent.

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><p>The audience roared, their applauses and flower throwing shenanigans gained many smiling faces from the cast. Mio, with her eagle perched on her shoulder, smiled brightly to the audience as she waved at them with her other arm.<p>

A young boy in the audience blushed as he pulled on his mother's dress. His mother looked at him, noticing his unwavering attention to the blonde woman. "Ah, the beauty of the sands strikes again."

The cast retired and collected any patronage the audience gave. The younger kids of the troupe cleaned up the tent as much as they can as the rest left to their personal tents. Mio had laid in her cot, smiling that the show went well and that she took her anxious feeling of earlier as just pre-show nervousness. They were done for the night, and she knew that when everyone is awake tomorrow morning, they would have to pack up and head out immediately to the next location: Konoha.

Closing her eyes, Mio had entered her dreams. Her memories that often visited her, reminding her of her home, Suna, and the people she once played with. Her mind was filled with laughter, the smiles of young children, and her team that she spent almost all her years with: Team Houka.

The sounds of woman screaming her lungs broke the dream however, the image of her happiness shattering and she found herself sitting up, beads of sweat trickling down her brow, her blonde hair matted to her face.

"Mio-san!" The voice of a little boy carried to her as she got up, and grabbed her scroll, and reached into her large bag for her pouch of kunai. She hadn't touched it for years now and assumed her kunais were dull and rusted. That's what happened when you quit being a shinobi, you forget a lot of things you have learned, and end up being just another civilian.

"Mio-neesan! Mio-neesan!" The boy cried and Mio threw herself through the tent's opening, looking around frantically for the boy. There were bodies scattered on the grass around the tents. The blonde gasped, taking in the scent of fresh, spilt blood. "Who in the world…" She asked herself, but remembered the boy. "Kou? Kou where are you?!" Mio called out as she ran around the area, mentally counting the bodies that were littered around her. "I-In here…" She heard a rasped voice, and found herself in the large tent where the show was previously held. A male, probably a head taller than she, stood in the middle, holding the boy up with his arm latched around his neck, a kunai pointed as his jugular. "Kou!" Mio yelled, grabbing for a kunai in her front pouch. She was right about the blade. Looking down she could see it had rusted, dulled and probably wouldn't do any damage to the kunais the invader probably had.

"Who are you?!" Mio yelled, the male only smiled underneath his hood, having a cloak around his body. She could tell, from the dark opening of his cloak, that he too was a shinobi, which led her to assume he was a bandit.

However, she was dead wrong.

"You forgot me already? _Mi-chan_."

The boy struggled in the man's grasped as his eyes filled with tears and fear. "O-oneesan." The boy rasped, which made his captor laugh. "Oneesan huh? Oh Mi-chan, is this what you have been doing all these years? Wasting away your talent on these….pathetic **freaks**." He mocked, as he drew the kunai knife closer, nicking the skin of the child.

"Leave him alone, sensei." Mio spoke, her voice may have sounded confident to some, but deep down she was frightened. Her dreams were haunted by this man, and it seemed she would never get away from him, ever. Now, six years later, he appears like this. "Hn." Her sensei let the boy go, allowing him to run to Mio. She crouched down and hugged the boy, only to feel his weight completely on her.

"K-Kou?" She whimpered, and looked down to see a kunai embedded in the boy's spine. She shot a terrified glance to her sensei who only smiled evilly, and turned and disappeared. He wanted her to chase him. Mio pulled away from the boy who had blood dripping from his mouth. He looked at the blonde and reached for her face. "Oneesan? I'm..scared…" He sobbed, and she smiled weakly, reaching for his hand and held it. "It's okay Kou. Sleep now, you'll feel better when you wake up." She assured him, knowing that the child would die in her hands. "Oyasumi…Mio-neesan."

Mio carefully placed the boy's body on the floor, removing the kunai so he could lay properly on his back. Trembling as she held the kunai, she looked at the spot where her sensei stood.

"I'll get you, Ren-sensei."

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><p>The blonde chased Ren in the night, the moon being her only source of light and the silence of the woods being her music. She jumped from branch to branch, the wind blowing her hair back. She had forgotten how much she loved running through the trees. Running with her team, chasing after someone or being chased. The thrill of the mission was always what made Mio continue being a jounin. Pride for her village was never something she held close to her heart. It was the thrill of being alive that made her continue; and also the thrill of being with her team.<p>

"Why did you do it, sensei?!" Mio called out. She had chased the male blindly, unable to sense him anywhere.

Suddenly, she was knocked off the branch and into the air. He had kicked her from behind, and received several cuts from his kunai. She couldn't sense him anymore again.

"You are so weak and fragile now, Mi-chan. What happened? Oh that's right!" He said sarcastically, as her body fell and hit a branch, and landed on the ground with a thud. Mio tried to pull herself up, but her hair was pulled, lifting her from the ground. "You left Suna, and became a freak! Wasting your talents like that, how could you my daring Mi-chan?" Ren released her hair, allowing her fall back again. Her body was picked up, and thrown aside quite a distance, only hearing a loud thud, and a tree toppling over. She didn't remember her sensei being this strong. Landing, on her stomach, Mio opened her eyes, her hands in front of her as he stepped on them, crushing the bone. She screamed, only to receive him 'tsk-ing' her. The last thing she saw was his face close to hers, his sly smile and a gate behind him in some distance.

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><p><strong>AN:** It's been a long time since I wrote a Naruto story so I decided to do this. I really would like some feedback on this c: and hope you guys like this story. I finished Chapter two already, and may upload tomorrow or something of that nature. Take care.

-Songie


	2. Konoha

**Keisei no Suna**

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><p>AN: This is an OCxSasuke fanfic. The OC is my creation, along with any characters regarding her past and also the antagonist in the story.

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><p><em>Chapter 2 – Konoha<em>

Mio couldn't remember much of what happened. All she could remember was….that smug look on her sensei—no—former sensei's face. She did not move but remembered faintly just laying alone in the dirt. She could recall what she assumed to be gates, but of what village? She wasn't entirely sure. All she knew that when she woke up, she did not see the blue skies that she expected, but rather a bright white ceiling. And instead of the sun in her face, though she could've made that simple mistake, she had lights.

"I think she's coming around." A woman had said as heels clacked against the floor.

"Hello? Can you hear me? How are you feeling?" Another voice asked and Mio knew it was to was a different woman. She couldn't reply, her voice dry and rasp from being unconscious and the lack of water. Her eyes fluttered, as she was only able to make out a pink blur before she slipped out of consciousness once more.

"Is she okay?" The nurse had asked the doctor in the room.

"Yes. I think she just needs more rest. Let me know when she wakes up."

"Of course doctor Haruno." The nurse said and the doctor left the room.

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><p>"<em>Why? Why did you do this to them, it wasn't their fault!" Mio had yelled at the top of her lungs. She took deep breaths to calm herself but it did not help.<em>

_Blood dripped from the kunai in Ren's hands. He had slaughtered them viciously and he did not care for their life. But why…__**why.**__ That was the question she asked herself. What drove him to do such a mad thing? _

_Ren did not answer but rather all he mumbled was, "It's your fault." Though he said it to himself, Mio heard it perfectly clear, as if she had been right next to him. _

"_What did I do?"_

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><p>"Has she shown any signs?" The hokage sat in his office, setting down the papers he had just finished for the day. Naruto stared at his old teammate and dear friend who only nodded.<p>

"She did wake up a few hours ago but did not say anything."

"I see. We were lucky to find her as quick as we did. If we hadn't…"

"Do you think she is a threat?" Sakura asked, but the hokage could not answer. "I cannot give you an answer to that Sakura. I…from what I saw, I don't think so. Has Shikamaru figured out what the scroll she was carrying was?"

She nodded. "It's nothing more than a summoning scroll, and you know that they are used by—"

"Those who are sealers." A male joined the room, rubbing the back of his neck. "But it's not just any scroll. This one is different." He explained.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked the tired looking shinobi who shrugged.

"I can't say. Only the woman can answer the questions, Naruto."

While Naruto was hokage, he often told people to simply call him by his name. Hokage held such responsibility and strictness that he did not necessarily like it (granted he did like the small burst of pride that came with the title). Though when in the presence of another official or higher-up, they definitely addressed him with the respect that he deserved which was fine by him. At the end of the day, he was still Naruto Uzumaki.

Just then, the door to the hokage's office opened and it revealed a nurse. She looked at doctor and nodded.

"Well then, seems like she's awake. Let's go pay her a visit." Sakua said and all three left the room.

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><p>Mio opened her eyes once more. She had considered that she was not in a hospital and that her mind was simply trying to coax her into believing she was dead.<p>

_How cruel._ She told herself, as if her mind would respond.

This time, she was able to actually stay awake and saw a nurse tending to her.

"Are you alright?"

Mio nodded. "Can.I…have some water please?" She asked politely, though her throat was unbelievably dry. The nurse smiled and nodded.

"Of course. Let me get you some." She said and left the room.

The blonde tried to prop herself up, and use the pillows as her support. The door opened again and Mio was thankful that the nurse brought her a glass and pitcher of water. Though, she was somewhat nervous to see three more bodies shuffle into the room.

"Glad to see you're awake." Sakura said and moved to check the girl. "How are you feeling?"

Mio took a sip from the glass and felt the coolness soothe her throat. She looked at the doctor and said, "Just a bit tired but I think I'll be fine…right?"

The doctor nodded. "You had some broken ribs, some cuts and bruises, but nothing some healing and a little rest could take care of." She smiled.

"That's good. Thank you."

"I'm sorry, but do you mind if we ask you some questions?" Naruto asked rather quickly.

"No no, I don't mind." Mio replied and he nodded.

"Who are you?"

"Mio Arihyoshi." She responded.

"Where are you from?"

That was the kicker question. When she encountered that question after she left Suna, Mio often said Suna just out of habit. But now, five years later, she wasn't sure how to respond.

"I…well. If you mean recently, I haven't been part of a village in years. I was, however, born and raised in Sunagakure." She responded and Naruto nodded.

"What do you mean by recently?" Shikamaru questioned and she sighed. She never liked explaining. "I mean that I no longer associate myself with the village. I am now part of a circus troupe…or was." She said, recalling the events that took place…how long has she even been out?

"I'm sorry to interrupt but, doctor, how long was I out?"

"About a week."

"Ah, alright. Thank you" A week.

A _week _since her troupe was murdered.

Naruto remained silent until he asked. "It didn't happen to be the circus troupe with the flag of a lotus flower was it?"

"Where each individual had names of a flower….yes. It was that troupe. " Mio was somewhat flattered with the fact that he even knew just who the troupe was. Granted, she didn't believe her troupe was all that popular to begin with.

"Mio-san…do you know anything about the massacre that took place there?"

Mio's eyes started to burn. She felt the tears soon to fall from her emerald eyes and she bit her lip to hold them back. "I…It was my old sensei." She responded.

"Ren Matsuchi. A-Ranked criminal and wanted by Suna and the man behind the multiple murder cases as of late."

She nodded. Then blinked before casting a glance. "Murder _cases?_"

Shikamaru nodded and held a couple of files up for her to see. "You can read them if you want…but you are under suspicion since you did have a relation to him…" Mio furrowed her brows.

"I…believe me when I say that I despise him. I…I know that this is asking a lot but please When I am well, please let me go so that I may pursue him." Mio requested. Naruto looked at his friends and looked at the girl.

"Mio-san, you are under the suspicion that you may be asso—"

"I AM NOT!" She yelled. She hasn't yelled like this since…

Since Ren yelled at her as to why she was leaving Sunagakure all those years ago.

"That man who had…had killed my friends, my troupe. The only thing I had in this world he just took from me in one night. And I will _never _forget it. I will _find _him." She said. Mio's hands were trembling, clutching the sheets.

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><p>Since the interrogation, Mio was left alone to gather her thoughts and ideas on how exactly to catch Ren. Well, one thing was for certain, she had to finish up her healing and get out of Konoha. Staying in one place won't do her any good and she couldn't exactly relax with Ren out to get her…<em>if <em>he's trying to get her, that is. The blonde looked out at the window to her right that was opened to let in the summer breeze. The air tickled her skin, goosebumps rising and giving her the shiver that was in some way relaxing.

Mio, however, did not take into account on what she would do when she found him. If she killed him, wouldn't she get in trouble too? And if she had alliances with Konoha, wouldn't that involve other nations as well if they had to deal with Ren? She was swamped with the thoughts that ran through her mind.

She had finished the lunch a nurse had brought up and left the empty tray on the table beside her. The glass of water still filled half-way with ice in it. Mio examined the room, seeing the painted pale green walls with small undistinguishable markings. The door was closed and all she could hear were the distant voices from the outside and shoes patting on the tiled floors.

Before she knew it, a knock was at the door before Naruto had entered along with the doctor, Sakura.

"How are you feeling, Mio?" Sakura asked, performing her usual routine of overlooking her clipboard that rested in a basket at the end of the bed.

"The usual. I actually think I can do some walking now. Would it be alright if I took a walk around the area? I won't stray far, hell, I'll take a guard if ya want me to." Mio offered, and though Sakura gave Naruto a rather concerned expression, Naruto smiled and nodded. "I'll walk with you."

"Alright. Is it okay if I change into my own clothes?" Mio turned to Sakura who nodded. "Just be careful putting it on, we don't want anything to open back up." She warned, which the summoner nodded. "Doctor's orders." Mio grinned.

"I'll wait for you outside, Mio." Naruto told her and the two left the girl to change.

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><p>The red cut kimono was, surprisingly, washed and cleaned and rested on a chair in the corner of the room. The rips that were made were sewn shut, and it looks almost brand new. Almost. Mio had little trouble slipping it on, seeing as she had to really move her arms more than anything. The red and flower designed kimono had a tanktop-top, no sleeves at all with only a black fishnet one piece under, the bottom only went to the middle of her thighs The kimono went down to her feet and had an opening on her right side, letting the wind hit her legs. She left her brownish-dark beige scarf behind and slipped her sandals on and quietly left the room, her hair in a rather loose braid swept to her left.<p>

Her banages, brown wrap, pouch and scroll were left behind in her room with the rest of her belongings. She was way too lax for her own good.

Mio met Naruto outside, smiling and looking at nothing in particular. Simply just admiring the season that graced the village. He turned to see Mio walking towards him with a weak smile. "Ready?"

She nodded and they started their quaint walk.

They were taking the road that lead into the village itself, people talking and bustling around. Stores opened to welcome in any air that would help in the warm weather.

"So what do you plan on doing?" Naruto asked randomly.

Mio turned to look at the male who stood a few inches taller than she was.

"About Ren? I'm not so sure. I have nothing to really go off here…I'll just be running around blindly yelling, 'come get me! I'm over here!' until he comes maybe?" She gave a weak laugh. "I really don't know. I want to go after him…whatever means necessary. He needs to be stopped." She told him and Naruto only listened, smiling to himself.

"Alright."

There was a silence before the blonde girl spoke up once more.

"I won't let you get in the way either, Hokage-sama." She told him, not bothering to look at his expression either. Instead, she was startled by his chuckle. "Call me Naruto and good. Because I never said we were letting you go easily in the first place, Mio-san." He stated and now she was the one to let out a sigh.

"Just Mio is fine and what do you mean?"

"I mean that, you are still under suspicion, and Shikamaru won't let you go so easily. But I'm allowing you to go after him, it's your right. However…"

"However…?"

"I have one condition."

Mio nodded, and saw that he leading her back to the hospital already.

"And that is?"


	3. Uchiha

**Keisei no Suna**

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><p>AN: This is an OCxSasuke fanfic. The OC is my creation, along with any characters regarding her past and also the antagonist in the story.

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><p><em>Chapter 3 – Uchiha<em>

A few days had passed since Mio and Naruto's discussion. Only two days later was she released from the hospital and given an inn to stay at for the duration of her stay, paid by the Hokage himself, she couldn't exactly argue. She found herself trudging through the streets of Konoha on a sunny, summer afternoon with a slight breeze to cool down the crowd. Mio, on the other hand, had taken the heat well as Suna was dreadful during this time of year, so she had grown accustomed to the dry heat.

That morning she had Shikamaru come by to tell her there was an important meeting and that Naruto requested she be there for it. He told her to come by around noon and left without saying anything else. If anything, she felt that the smart jounin walked on egg shells around her, which she didn't quite understand why. She admitted countless times that she had no intention on endangering Konoha. She had no gain from it so shouldn't that be enough? Wasn't greed was filled the drives of many who attack others? For something to gain?

Mio arrived at the Hokage tower easily, seeing as it was deep within the village and was in front of the Hokage monument. Five faces were carved into it which didn't interest Mio as much as it should. She was too busy dealing with the butterflies in her stomach to really pay attention to her surroundings as the thought of a meeting fogged her mind. That was one of her problems, focusing too much on such petty things that she should just take in stride. Regardless, she took in a deep breath and let it out.

"Here it goes."

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><p>"Ah, Mio, how are you feeling?" Naruto asked, a small group gathered around the table and parted to make way for the newcomer. She smiled sheepishly. "Fine. A lot better actually, thanks." She said and tried hard not to make any eye contact with anyone but the Hokage.<p>

"Relax. I called you guys here to discuss the matter of the murder cases lately. Most importantly, the one that Mio was caught in." He eyed the girl before looking at everyone else. "Shikamaru?"

The lazy jounin nodded and spoke aloud. "We have some word that he might be staying at a small, recluse village inside the Land of Rain. However, we believe that he's heading to the Land of Earth. Reasons why, we don't exactly know, but we are trying to find out." Mio listened closely. Why would Ren go to the Land of Earth when she was here in Konoha? Why not attack her when she was about to die…

"Bastard…" She mumbled to herself, not noticing she spoke outloud. Naruto looked at her and asked worryingly, "What?" Mio looked up quickly and noticed the attention fixated on her which she shook her head. "Nothing, continue."

"Anyways. We just need to get a clue as to what Ren is up to, and if we can, stop him before these murders get out of hand." Shikamaru told them, which they all nodded. "I will be assigning Team Taka to this mission." Naruto told them, which Mio lifted a brow and awkwardly raised a hand. "Uhm…what..who?"

"Us." A male's voice brought her attention to a rather tall raven, wearing anbu uniform and a mask on. The three with him were masked as well, so Mio couldn't get a good look at him but looked confused. "Wait. Naru—Lord Hokage" catching herself before she got into some trouble with the others. "I…with all due respect I can take on this mission myself. Hell! I can just get out of your hairs and just take this as a personal thing, no need to involve yourselves!" She tried to convince him but Naruto grinned and shook his head. "This is my condition, Mio. You will not take on Ren by yourself." He told her simply.

Mio frowned, furrowing her brows. Was she really going to argue with the Hokage? She could just go against Ren herself, but at the moment she wasn't at the top of her game. Actually, she hasn't been at the top of her game for years now. So maybe having the three with her until she could handle herself…maybe she could get away—

"Alright?" Naruto said, bringing Mio's attention back down to earth.

"Alright what?" She questioned, and looked around.

"The mission. You'll leave tonight and meet up at the west gates." He explained to her. She nodded. "…Fine." Was all she said before the Hokage dismissed everyone except for Mio.

"You know the one who spoke up, the one in the middle?" Naruto asked her, as she recalled that raven haired male. "What about him?"

"He was the one that found you outside of Konoha on the verge of death, in case you wanted to know." He gave her a grin. Mio looked behind her at the closed door and sighed. "Better go thank him then." She said, before turning back and saying, "Thank you for everything."

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><p>"W-wait! Excuse me?" Mio called out to the three Anbu who walked in the hall. They stopped in their tracks and turned to her. The three had animal masks on, the one in the middle wearing a dog mask, the girl, Mio presumed from her body structure, wore a cat, and the male on the other side wore a dragon-like mask. They didn't say anything but Mio gave a shy smile before asking, "Were you the one who found me?"<p>

"Yes, I was." He said in a monotone voice, giving the girl a shiver. Boy were anbu always serious.

"I uh…just wanted to thank you uhm…"

"Sasuke." He said bluntly, which she smiled, lighting the hallway up.

"Sasuke….thank you Sasuke. I owe you big time." She said before turning on her heels and running down the hall.

The girl beside him took her mask off, revealing deep pink locks and thick rimmed glasses. Karin, their sensor and healer of the team, was rather flustered. "That girl's chakra is very bright. Very warm too." She spoke aloud. Her teammate, the dragon masked, revealed his features as well, his white hair showing and violet eyes looking at the end of the empty hallway. "Way too bubbly for my taste." He said and looked at Sasuke, who shrugged. Turning, leaving his mask on with the other two following. He wouldn't tell his teammates that she thought she was rather bright and had a feeling she would be a problem. Most of all, he prayed that she wouldn't jeopardize this mission.

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><p>Mio had little to nothing to pack. With her scarf wrapped tightly around her slender neck, and large summoning scroll behind her, she was ready go. She did, however, stock up on the essentials, some snack bars, kunais and shurikens in case and three smoke bombs.<p>

The blonde arrived at the gates at 9PM sharp, the three anbu ready, masks on and katana at their backs. "Ready?" Sasuke had asked Mio who nodded, casting a determined look.

"Let's roll." She said before the four vanished into the night.

Two hours into their continuous run, the team found themselves making great timing, close to the edge of the Land of Fire borders. The trip was silent, which Mio did not mind, however, she felt the awkward tension in the air. She sighed, her legs burning from the strenuous run. She was beside Sasuke, who was up front, so she fell behind, next to Karin and Suigetsu at their six. Sasuke turned his head to ask, "Are you okay?"

She nodded, not wanting to seem like a bother. "Just fine."

"We can stop if you need to rest, but we will need to push harder when we get back on the road." Suigetsu told her, which she shook her head, pulling her scroll in front of her and releasing it, quickly biting her thumb and smearing it, a poof of smoke clouded her vision then a large tiger came to her view. "Mio-san." It ran alongside her, which she smiled. "I just need a lift for a bit, please." She told her summon, who purred. "Of course."

Mio jumped onto the tiger's back, and moved below the group, as they were traveling by treetop. "I'll keep up."

Karin scoffed. "Just who does she think she is? I swear if she slows us down…"

"Karin can you shut up for a minute?" Suigetsu told her, which she turned, and glared under her mask, huffing.

"Quiet. We have company." Sasuke muttered, eying the blonde below. He was curious to know if she had sensed them as quick as he did.

Before Sasuke could ask his question, Karin spoke low, "we have three behind us and two on our sides."

"Spread out, we'll take them out one by one."

On the ground, Mio didn't dare to turn around. She felt the chakras that surrounded the group and they were definitely not friendly. Moving one arm to reach into her back pouch, she quickly swerved left, avoiding a kunai that aimed for her moving arm. "Let's play that way then." She said, and turned around, saddling the tiger backwards and performed hand signs quickly. Mio took a deep breath, and made a tunnel with her right hand and blew into it, a large ball of wind blew and she watched as the opponent above her moved into vision which allowed her to throw a kunai.

The sound of a knife imbedding into a tree trunk discouraged the girl as she turned around. She was getting rusty seeing as she hasn't fought in years. Placing her hands on the back of the tiger, she pushed, throwing herself into the air and kicking to her side, hitting a blocking shinobi.

"What do you want!?" She yelled, only to receive silence as her answer as another shinobi hit her back, knocking the wind out of her. She couldn't sense them like she did years ago in her fighting years. She closed her eyes, and suddenly felt her body thrown over someone's shoulder. She formed a fist and was about to land a hard hit to their tailbone before a voice stopped her. "Calm down, it's just me." Sasuke had told her in a low tone, and she stopped.

Karin and Suigetsu had managed to round of the shinobi in a short time, taking out a handful of the attackers, leaving only one alive. The group landed on the grand, Sasuke letting Mio down, which she nodded as a thanks and looked the man who was beaten to a bloody pulp. "Who sent you?" Sasuke questioned the shinobi who only grinned. He wasn't going to give up any information, and Mio knew this. She suddenly found herself kicking the side of his head, the male falling to his side. "Bastard, who sent you!?" She yelled, receiving a chuckle. "The beauty of the sands sure is beautiful when she's angry." Mio's eyes widened as she turned. "Let's go." She mumbled, and disappeared. Suigetsu and Karin looked to each other before their leader who nodded for them to follow her. Sasuke would finished the male off, only after the man had whispered, "Ikito-sama."


	4. Harsh

**Keisei no Suna**

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><p>AN: This is an OCxSasuke fanfic. The OC is my creation, along with any characters regarding her past and also the antagonist in the story.

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><p><em>Chapter 4 - Harsh<em>

ANBU were mysterious shinobi. They were quiet, sneaky, and to some, very hard to trust. Most, if not all ANBU were rather cold, and secretive people, due to the simple fact that their missions composed of being undercover and containing information that is to die for.

That was something Mio couldn't understand. ANBU were the opposite of what she was; she wanted everyone to know about her, they hid themselves from others. They dedicated themselves to the mission first, she dedicated her life to her comrades. This was where people would define the reason of shinobis and their living.

For the mission, or for each other?

After the close encounter, the group had managed to get to the entrance of the small unnamed village. The group gathered together, as the rest of the travel was silent, and Mio sighed before apologizing. "I'm sorry." It was mostly directed to the Uchiha who said nothing, but disregarded it. "Alright. We need a disguise just to look like civilians incase our target may have spies amongst the residents." Everyone but Mio nodded, and with a poof of smoke, they transformed into regular clothing, but with their faces revealed.

While it was a risk having their identities out, no one would automatically assume they were shinobi. The hokage had told them it was alright to do so, so they went on his word.

The group entered the village with ease as it was just a simple traveling village which meant that there were no guards at the gates. It was just a passing village that people stayed at to rest at, seeing as the majority of the people represented different villages. Mio smiled to herself, wondering if they were just genin or chuunin passing by. Nostalgia hit her as she suddenly remembered a time when she and her group had gone on their first mission as genin, having to stay at a small passerby village for the night.

That night, she could remember she had saved the youngest of her group, Enho, from bandits who somehow believed they had carried an important scroll. She sighed, smiling to herself, which caught the attention of Sasuke who eyed her. "Are you okay?" Suigetsu was the one to ask. Mio jumped, and blushed a bit, slightly embarrassed as she forgotten for a moment she was with the group. "Y-yes! Sorry. I was reminiscing." She stated, which just made the white-haired nodded and focus on scanning the area. Mio looked around as well.

Karin leaned over to her captain, and asked, "When are you going to ask her about the name the bandit said?" Sasuke didn't bother to look at the female, but focused on getting to the inn they were staying at in one piece. She sighed. "Sasuke, she's going to be heavy weight on us. She couldn't even fight back against bandits! How does she expect to—" "Don't worry about it Karin. Be quiet, and leave it to me." He told her. Karin gulped, and nodded, silencing herself the rest of the way.

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><p>"So we'll stay here for one night, two if needed, depending on what info we can gather." Sasuke told the team as they were huddled in the lobby of the inn. The owner went to retrieve the keys, leaving the four to talk amongst themselves.<p>

Mio didn't really care to listen. She had an idea of her anyways, just as she always did, and only nodded when she thought to do so. The owner came back and handed the keys to Sasuke, two different ones, and they headed up a flight of stairs to the rooms.

"So it'll be the same room arrangements as always. Karin with Suigetsu, Mio you're with me." He told her. She cursed in her head, knowing that leaving now would be hard and rather futile. "I think that uh, I should stay with Karin…you know, since girls and all." She tried to convince the Uchiha, who looked at the pink-haired girl. Karin, on the other hand, though she did not like Mio in general, preferred the girl stay with her than with Sasuke.

Almost their friends, if not the whole village, was aware of the crush the girl had on the raven. Even Sasuke knew this, and usually paid no mind to it as long as it didn't interfere with his life. He was used to having girls swoon, and fall at his feet, ever since he was in the academy.

Karin nodded to Sasuke, who nodded. "Fine, you stay with Karin then, Suigetsu with me." He said, and retired to his room, as did the girls. Mio sighed heavily, plopping herself on the twin-sized bed. She was exhausted, but knew that they were going to leave to see what they could gather. There was never time to rest.

The silence was rather awkward between the two females. Mio could sense that the other female held some sort of hostility towards her, which just made the blonde summoner smile wryly when she turned to look at the girl, who glared back.

Mio frowned, then pushed herself up, and stared at the girl.

"What's your deal?" Mio huffed, which made Karin raise a brow before scoffing.

"My deal? What's yours?! Are you insanely stupid or something, believing that you're going to take down this Ren guy by yourself? You couldn't even handle bandits!" Karin told her. Mio looked down at the bedspread. The girl was right. Mio knew she could barely handle that one bandit, let alone the group. If it wasn't for Sasuke, she could've gotten hurt, and that's what bugged her.

She hated the feeling of being so useless. It was something that she tried to avoid, especially when she was on missions years ago. The time she could recall when she had someone managed to become a hostage and Enho and Ikito had to save her. It was that very day she vowed to never allow herself to be in that predicament again. And now look at her! Mio sighed. "You're right." She looked up to see the girl stare hard at her, causing her to frown slightly. "I can't take him on, I know that. But it doesn't hurt to try." Mio told her before pushing herself off the bed, and walking out of the room, not wanting to continue their debacle.

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><p>Silence fell between the two men. They both minded their own business, Sasuke working on sharpening his katana and Suigetsu thinking to himself. He thought about why they were on the mission. He understood that other ANBU teams were busy with their own missions, but why did team Taka, of all teams, had to be assigned to this? Couldn't a team of their jounin take this mission on?<p>

What he didn't know was that his leader, Sasuke, was the one who found Mio near death outside the gates, and it was he who brought her to Konoha. Hell, if he did know he wouldn't believe it unless he was there. The Uchiha just wasn't the type to show much compassion towards anyone (maybe to Naruto but even that that's pushing it).

Suigetsu stood against the window, looking at the handful of folks walking about. That is, until a red kimono and blonde hair caught his eye.

"Oi, Sasuke. I think the summoner has gone for a little stroll." Suigetsu told him and turned to see that no one was with him.

"That quick bastard."

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><p>Mio wandered the streets, watching faces passing her by. The summer breeze kissed her cheeks, tossing her hair around slightly. It was weathers like these that made her miss Suna sometimes. Suna, with the horrifying summers, but gentle nights, the Suna she loved and was born and raised in. <em>Her home<em>. She could remember her friends, or rather the few she had, and her time there.

"I can't take him on like this…what will I do?" Mio asked herself. Not noticing that someone was in front of her, she walked straight into their chest, snapping her from her thoughts and causing her to look at her obstacle. "Uh…"

"Watch where ya goin' girl." A rather tall, bulky man told her, walking with two men behind him. They gave her a dirty look, and scoffed at her. "Hey, Ozuma, I think she might be a…" The man gave a wink to the guy she had bumped into. He smiled to himself. "She does look a bit…underdressed. How much are you charging?" He asked Mio. Mio looked at him, raising brow. "What are you talking about?!"

"Oh don't play dumb! We know what you are. No point in trying to hide it." One of the other males smirked as they inched closer to her.

"So? How much? Or are we not good enough customers for you, blondie?" Ozuma mocked, reaching a hand out to grab her until Mio was pulled away from his grasp.

"Leave her alone." Sasuke looked at them, his cold stare infuriating the men.

"Why you little…! Who do you think you are? First come, first serve kid." Ozuma told the raven, who didn't seem fazed. Mio looked between both men, sighing. "Men are always looking for fights." She whispered to herself, causing one of the fellows to question, "What did you say girl?!"

She smiled to them, pulling away from Sasuke's grasp. "Tell me gentlemen! Do you like tricks?"

Neither of them answered, causing her to laugh lightly. "Lo and behold, I will present to you, a disappearing act!" Reaching into her front pouch as she twirled in a circle, Mio threw the small smoke bomb onto the floor, disappearing from their sight.

"Where did she go?!" The three men looked alarmed. "That witch. She's probably a shinobi. Disgusting." Ozuma spat on the ground, and motioned for his men to follow, Sasuke watching him.

"That girl is more trouble than I thought." He told himself, following after her.


	5. Weakness

**Keisei no Suna**

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><p>AN: This is an OCxSasuke fanfic. The OC is my creation, along with any characters regarding her past and also the antagonist in the story.

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><p><em>Chapter 5 – Weakness<em>

_Where did that girl run off to? _Sasuke thought to himself as he trudged through the village. It was only so big, so how could he not find her? The sky began to turn an orangey shade, a hue of pink embedded into it. The evening time had begun to roll in and he would be damned if she got lost or kidnapped or worse; killed. Naruto would have his head for sure.

He remembered before the meeting that afternoon, before Mio, Shikamaru and his team had arrived. _"I could tell she has some power inside her, but she just needs some help bringing it out, that's all." Naruto explained, looking through the papers he had Gaara send over regarding her old team. "From these reports, they were a great sealing team, and she was a very good Taijutsu user."_

_Naruto gave Sasuke the quick rundown of Mio's past and how she no longer fought for a village, but used the agility and summoning skills she learned as part of her routine in her group. Hence, why Naruto could tell why she had such potential; because she did have it at one time in her life. The knock on the door silenced the two, and the meeting had started._

Sasuke was, he would never admit aloud, curious.

Mio posed no threat to him, he believed. She had a potential that the hokage could see, unlike Sasuke. She proved herself to him when she couldn't fight off a single bandit…she proved she was useless.

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><p>"That was a close one." Mio whispered to herself, hiding behind a shack as she was sitting on the dirt, back to the wall. She had her scroll leaning against the wall beside her with her dirtied hands resting on top of her knees. She sighed heavily. What she didn't sense was Sasuke's chakra slowly closing in on her, as she closed her eyes and opened them to find two red orbs staring back at her. She was about to scream if it weren't for his hand covering her mouth. She wriggled around, trying to get out of his grasp.<p>

"Hey…hey! It's me! Calm down." Sasuke whispered to her harshly. Mio stared at Sasuke's face for a while before her body relaxed, and leaned back into the wall. Sasuke removed his hand and sighed. "What do you think you're doing?" He asked her.

The blonde sighed and shook her head. "Nothing…" She answered, turning away only to see the male a little frustrated. "Go back to the inn, Sasuke." She told him and was about to stand up if it weren't for him yanking her back down to the ground. "Ow!"

"I'm not leaving without you. I have my orders." He spoke coldly towards her. Mio could sense that he didn't want to be here, talking to her. Or rather, she could sense that he didn't want to be here in general and she was to blame for that.

It was her fault entirely that Team Taka had to be put on this mission, babysitting the likes of her. However, it was also Naruto's condition that made her team up with them. She should've left the village while she could before this whole thing started….

Yet something stopped her. She couldn't place a finger, but something told her to just go with it. Take the chance. It had been a long time since she's seen the woes of battle and she rarely made new friends since her troupe was traveling all the time. There was never a chance to sit down and get to know someone.

This was her chance.

"You don't have to follow those orders. You could just, uh, tell him I changed my mind about going after my old sensei and call it a day!" Mio suggested, but the Uchiha's gaze on her never wavered or showed any reaction. She looked away, sighing. "Alright…I'm sorry I'm really a pain. I just haven't fought in a long time, so I'm kind of out of the game." She told him. It was funny, since she had a feeling he didn't give two shits about her and her excuse yet, she's going through the trouble to just talk to the guy.

"Hn." Was all he replied with, releasing her wrist from his grasp. Mio rubbed the same spot and smiled softly to herself and turned to him, holding her hand out. "Let's start over! I'm Mio Arihyoshi, also known as the Pear Blossom, from my troupe." She told him.

Sasuke eyed looked at her hand, and then her. She was definitely strange, rather a handful of trouble, yet instead of refusing her handshake, he took her somewhat rough hand into his own, and shook it. "Sasuke Uchiha He replied, and the girl smiled. "I look forward to working with you, Sasuke Uchiha!"

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><p>The next day, Mio woke up refreshed and new. The day before, Sasuke had told her that he would help her with training, which she couldn't help but accept, much to Karin's dismay, who glared at her. The four were in the captain's room, discussing the intel they had all came across.<p>

Suigetsu was the first to share. "It seems that the bandits were sent by someone other than Ren. A guy named Ikito runs this little town, so he definitely knows we're here." Mio's stomach dropped. _Ikito?_ Karin caught the girl's sudden change due to her chakra being very easy to read. She turned to her, "Seems like you've had a connection with this Ikito?"

Mio didn't say anything but nodded her head. "He was my old teammate from my sealing team in Suna." She explained. "We weren't as close as I was with my other teammate, Enho, but we were friends at least." She laced her fingers together, gripping her hands tightly. "He was a weird guy now that I think about it… and not a good weird either." Mio found herself remembering times with Ikito and the missions her team had been on. The connection she had with him was strange, but civil. She couldn't place a finger on it but that was just how she felt.

"So he's in charge huh…that doesn't surprise me actually."

"What do you mean?" He asked, and she gave a small smile.

"Ikito was never one to take orders. He always tried to be the leader, thinking he was so powerful and knew everything. It's funny because I'd tease him once in a while about it, telling him he wouldn't get anywhere. Silly me…since I'm the one who can't even be called a shinobi anymore." Mio looked at her twiddling fingers and sighed. She could feel the burning of tears that she tried to blink away. Emotions were a weakness. The idea of that was something she was made to believe and she did for the longest time of her 'shinobi' career. She was touchy with her past. She disliked the fact that she could show her vulnerable side so easily to this Uchiha, who held no interest for her in the first place. She bit her lower lip, holding the burning of tears back, blinking her eyes fast to get them to stop. "Sorry." She mumbled.

"Anyways…when I left the team, Ikito was kind of upset with me since I just kinda left without a notice or anything. It was really him and…well my sensei that were truly upset with the fact I quit my shinobi life."

Sasuke was baffled by this girl.

He couldn't for a moment think of not being a shinobi…it was practically his life. What would he do? Just live as a simple man with simple dreams? He disliked that idea. He thought it was weak, and stupid, and so he judged Mio. Judged her for her actions, and deemed her as such; stupid and weak.

It was sad because Mio could sense Sasuke's change of feeling. She could feel the air tension once again, which made her feel suffocated. She suddenly breathed heavily, and tried to relax herself. "The only reason why I would think he would attack me is the fact he's still not over me leaving the team the way I did."

"This is stupid." Was call he muttered, and Mio looked at him as he stood up abruptly.

"Wha—"

"This is a waste of time. It sounds like just petty business between you and your old team. There is no point for Konoha, much less ANBU to be involved."

Mio was speechless. She had been saying that the entire time, and now hearing it played back to her, she felt somewhat hurt…as if she wasn't worth anyone's time suddenly. Karin and Suigetsu both looked at each other, unsure of whether or not to step in. "I did say—"

"You can settle your own business. My team and I are leaving." He threw his hand down, showing this was the move he was making, and his team would follow forth, and readied themselves to leave, when Mio called out, "But Naruto said—" "He is the Hokage. Where is your respect?" He scolded her. Mio didn't say anything only muttering an apology. "Goodbye, Arihyoshi." And Sasuke disappeared, and so did his team.

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><p>Mio was left by herself. She had given his team an hour to themselves and left the inn, only to return and collect the small things she left there. When she did go back, she saw that Karin's and her room closed, and Sasuke's and Suigetsu's room open. <em>Strange, <em>she thought. Perhaps Karin had closed the door on instinct…or maybe she was still in there. Regardless, Mio turned the knob to see it was unlocked and saw her scroll opened on the floor. "What…?" She mumbled and looked around, seeing no one in the room.

She was cautious when she walked to roll her scroll up. Suddenly, her vision was gone, and found herself screaming into a piece of cloth. Her body became limp as silence filled the room.


	6. Ikito

**Keisei no Suna**

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><p>AN: This is an OCxSasuke fanfic. The OC is my creation, along with any characters regarding her past and also the antagonist in the story.

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><p><em>Chapter 6 – Ikito <em>

_She floated in the vast darkness. Her body felt light as coldness became her closest friend. She could feel herself slowly coming to. Something screamed at her to wake up, to move, but as she tried she could feel her wrists being restrained. Was she captured? Was she going to die here, before she even completed her mission?_

_What mission?_

_The mission that she gave herself when she found her sensei in the midst of the massacre of her troupe? _

_What is happening?_

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><p>Team Taka was halfway home when they decided to stop for a break. Although Sasuke and Karin were both against the mission to begin with, Suigetsu felt as if they were making a wrong move. "Guys, I think we should go back…"<p>

"Why? What for? To help the girl who can't even help herself?" Karin snapped at him. The male didn't reply, but continued. "I just feel that we are making a mistake." He told her, which Karin continued on her rant. "She's just some stupid girl who wants to take revenge. That's NOT our business. It's between her and her sensei and team, or whoever else is involved. Do you hear Konoha in there? Do you hear our names in that statement? No you don't. So why do we—"

"Alright, alright. Calm down Karin, sheesh. Aren't I allowed some input?"

Sasuke remained quiet during the two's bickering, and only thought to himself of the confrontation earlier that day. He didn't doubt himself for being harsh, nor did he regret what he had said to the summoner. It was true that Konoha truly had no purpose in being concerned with a girl's petty personal fight. The only reason that Team Taka had to ever be involved was simply because of their Hokage's orders.

Naruto was a kind fellow. Everyone adored him, and many were glad for when he came to leadership. He was the person that put his life on the line for anyone, bringing home his comrades and even those who he fights with that still had a heart in them. Naruto told Sasuke that she had potential…for what reason? So that it would give Sasuke more inclination to help the girl? To what? Help regain what she had lost?

This wasn't a fairytale, Sasuke told himself, so he wasn't sure what was going on through Naruto's head. But…he always does things for a reason so perhaps it wasn't all for nothing. Sasuke cursed himself about twenty times before he gestured for his group to get up. He was going to regret this.

"Let's go."

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><p>Feeling something pull her arms behind her, Mio unconsciously tried to adjust herself. When she wasn't able to move, she started to come to, not remember where or what happened in the last…well however long she was out. She was tied by ropes with chakra bindings behind her and a metal pole. Whoever brought her here meant for her to not escape…at all. Feeling the sudden pang of fear, Mio tried move, as if struggling would loosen her bonds. When she couldn't, she started to panic.<p>

"_Shinobi do not panic…they remain calm until their mission was finished, even if a kunai was at their neck…they did not fear anything._" A voice whispered. Mio became more frightened. Her scroll was tossed in the corner of the room, out of her reach, along with her pouch of her dulled weapons. She felt powerless and held her breath. She was angry, frightened, confused…but none of these feelings were giving her the power that she needed. She stilled herself as footsteps came close to her, allowing her to not show she was frightened. The voice she heard…she could recognize it, though it was deeper than before when she last heard it years ago.

"Ikito…." She whispered, and the male clapped. "Yes? Mi-chan." He came in full view for her, and she looked up to see his sinister grin that he always had. The man stood at least five foot ten to six feet. His crimson painted hair was pulled into a loose ponytail that went to the nape of his neck. He wore a beige shirt, ripped at the hems and sleeves and black pants that went down to his ankles, with black sandals. He had a katana strapped to his back with a pouch that rested on the front of his right hip. His skin was dark in the room, but Mio could see that he has been under the Suna sun, his skin darker than she last saw him. "What are you doing here?! Why aren't you back at home with Kagura!?" She yelled at him. "Ah…sweet Kagura…well Mio, if you were still in Suna, you would know what happened." He said to her, pacing in front of her. Ikito did not look at her as he talked. "About a year or so after you left, Kagura and I married and were expecting our first child. A few months into her pregnancy, Kagura fell ill and we hoped that it would not affect the baby…unfortunately..well…" He scoffed. "No..she didn't..Kagura.."

"She died before our baby could be born during the delivery. Our child died with her as the umbilical cord was wrapped around its neck and it was too late for the doctors to save her." His voice became harsh, and he remained quiet for Mio to take in what had happened.

She remembered Kagura very well. The woman was beyond sweet, and had a motherly figure towards Mio. They were friends through her relationship with Ikito. She was there for their wedding, and remembered how happy that day was. It was foreign to her how that happy day led up to the present. Where Ikito was holding her hostage, talking to her as if it was her fault that Kagura had died. "Ikito, I'm—" "What? You're what? _Sorry_? Sorry isn't going to bring her back, Mi-chan. "

Mio remained silent, bringing her thoughts together before looking at up at her old teammate. "What do you want from me?" She received a slap to her cheek as a response. "Don't look at me with those eyes of yours. I'm simply living my life out to help our sensei. He's very anxious to see you again Mi-chan. After all, Kagura's death and so many more incidences happened right after you left our team. When you decided to be just a _petty_ civilian." His words had some disgust in it. He was repulsed by being so…_normal_. Where was the fun? The unique attributes in it? There weren't any, and Mio knew what he thought of her right now. A pathetic civilian who cannot do anything a shinobi can do.

"What? Because I chose to not kill and fight anymore? Because I chose a peaceful way of living?!" Her voice became strong, defensive as she looked up at him with tears in her eyes from the stinging pain on her cheek. "Because I chose to bring happiness to others?!"

"And what about OUR happiness?!" Ikito yelled at her, bringing his face down to hers. "What about the team we had created? Our memories that we all shared. You threw that away to be in a freak show?!" He stood straight and laughed. His laugh that sent shivers throughout her body. He lost all his senses, too blinded by anger and blasphemy at Mio's response to think straight. He turned to pick up a stick that rested on the wall and walk back to Mio. "Ikito, please. Stop all this now."

Mio received a hard hit on her arm. Ikito swung the stick around, hitting her arms, legs, stomach. Anywhere that his stick could hit. He had lost all his senses already and it was pointless for Mio say anything else but scream.

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><p>"Why are we going back, Sasuke?!" Karin huffed, following behind said man. Sasuke decided to turn the entire team around and head back to the small village they had left. They had just up and left Mio and he did necessarily feel bad for her…more so he felt he should give her a nudge in what she wants to do.<p>

"Shut up Karin." Suigetsu said with a sigh, which made the female only pout and huffed.

"Something seems off." Sasuke mumbled, which the team heard, on their guards. "Get ready. Seems there's some company up ahead." They were a few miles outside the village, but something just didn't seem right. "Karin, can you locate Mio's chakra?" Sasuke asked, which she nodded, and looked for the female. "She's…two miles to the east of the village…there's another person with her." "Alright. We're going there." The team turned their direction to where Karin had spoken of.

There were a handful of shinobi who came at them. Many used wind based abilities, but they were no match for the team who blasted right through. Though, it seemed that the more they knocked out of their way, more just appeared and at this point became a barrier between them and where Mio was. "This is ridiculous." Sasuke said as he shot a fireball towards a group of shinobi. Suigetsu rushed ahead of the leader and blasted an opening that led straight to the small shack. "Just go on ahead! Karin and I can handle it." Karin nodded to Sasuke, agreeing with Suigetsu. The Uchiha nodded, and disappeared, sparing no time to get to the blonde.

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><p>Mio was slipping in and out of consciousness. Something told her to stay awake, but her body begged her to give into the pain and slip out of what was happening. Her body ached, bruised and bleeding from the hits Ikito had dealt. She opened her eyes, barely, to see him throw the stick aside and reach into his back to pull out a kunai. "Now, I am going to end you, sweet Mi-chan." He said, voice shaking with adrenaline and insanity. The girl heard him, but did not react. Her eyes closed, and she waited for the strike. She was done for, as was her pathetic revenge against her sensei. She fell unconscious once more.<p>

The kunai never came down though. Something had halted it. Sasuke had made it in the nick of time, thrusting his katana into Ikito's gut, away from Mio's body. Without hesitation, he asked, "Who are you?" Ikito smiled, blood seeping through his mouth. "Mi-chan's old teammate. She can expect that our sensei will visit Enho." He laughed, as Sasuke pulled his blade out of the man, and he fell limp onto the floor, the blood pooling around him. He was dead.

Sasuke turned to the summoner, cutting her ropes that bound her and sheathed his sword. They would have to get to Konoha quickly if they were to keep her alive. Wasting no time, he grabbed her scroll and had it strapped to his back before picking her up bridal style, and leaving the area. He regrouped with his team and they headed back to Konoha.

"Is she going to make it?" Suigetsu asked, looking at the unconscious female. Sasuke didn't answer. "Her chakra is very weak…if you want her alive, we need to hurry." Karin said, which Sasuke already knew. He could feel her chakra fade quickly, and looked down to see her bloodied face. She really took a beating, and he felt partly to blame yet he didn't. He told her to go on her own, quench her thirst for revenge on her own time, and yet he came back to save her. He didn't owe her anything; yet, he was drawn by his curiosity of her potential. When they got back, he would offer her something that he wouldn't offer anyone. Something that he would see to personally.

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><p><strong>Sup readers of the woooorld. Yes, I am a slow updater. I get sidetracked by a TON of things, so you know. I haven't forgotten about this story though, I adore my ideas for it so I am trying to keep it going, even though noone will care to read it because...life.<strong>

-Songie


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